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Ravens have best shot at second wild card despite little control

The NFL unveiled the official playoff scenarios for the final weekend of the regular season, and as was mapped out here last night, none of the four teams still alive for the AFC's second wild card are in complete control.

That being said, the Ravens have the best shot of making the playoffs among the glut of teams vying for the conference's final berth.

Baltimore has five ways to make the postseason while Miami has four, San Diego has two and Pittsburgh has one. I'm going to skip outlining all the reasons why each team earns which tiebreaker because it was explained in detail here last night.

But here's a quick, organized primer of the playoff scenarios for Week 17, as provided by the NFL:

So both the Bengals and Ravens have something to play for this week. The Ravens can make their path to the postseason easier by winning or tying Cincinnati while the Bengals can still claim a first-round bye.

The Chiefs, who face the Chargers, could opt to scale back and rest players as they're locked into the AFC's fifth seed. That could dampen the Ravens' chances if the Chargers are given an easier path, but it's also possible Kansas City plays its full lineup to help preserve the integrity of the race.